Album Review

Eye in the Sky provided the Alan Parsons Project with their first Top Ten hit since 1977's I Robot, and it's hard not to feel that crossover success was one of the driving forces behind this album. The Project never shied away from hooks, whether it was on the tense white funk of "I Wouldn't Want to Be Like You" or the gleaming pop hooks of "Games People Play," but Eye in the Sky was soft and smooth, so smooth that it was easy to ignore that the narrator of the title track was an ominous omniscient who spied either on his lover or his populace, depending on how deeply you wanted to delve into the concepts of this album. And, unlike I Robot or The Turn of a Friendly Card, it is possible to listen to Eye in the Sky and not dwell on the larger themes, since they're used as a foundation, not pushed to center stage. What does dominate is the lushness of sound, the sweetness of melody: this is a soft rock album through and through, one that's about melodic hooks and texture. In the case of the spacy opening salvo "Sirius," later heard on sports talk shows across America, or "Mammagamma," it was all texture, as these instrumentals set the trippy yet warm mood that the pop songs sustained. And the real difference with Eye in the Sky is that, with the exception of those instrumentals and the galloping suite "Silence and I," all the artiness was part of the idea of this album was pushed into the lyrics, so the album plays as soft pop album — and a very, very good one at that. Perhaps nothing is quite as exquisite as the title song, yet "Children of the Moon" has a sprightly gait (not all that dissimilar from Kenny Loggins' "Heart to Heart"), "Psychobabble" has a bright propulsive edge (not all that dissimilar from 10cc), and "Gemini" is the project at its dreamiest. It all adds up to arguably the most consistent Alan Parsons Project album — perhaps not in terms of concept, but in terms of music they never were as satisfying as they were here.

Customer Reviews

I'm Eighteen and Lovin' it!

by
AnneliseVincent

Seriously, people don't listen to music anymore - everything in songs is crap...except this stuff! I mean, come on! I'm eighteen. People expect me to like Katy Perry, Black Eyed Peas, and all that Lady What's Her Face's Love Game. :) I can't even think about that kind of stuff!

THIS is music! I listen to You're gonna get your fingers burned and Eye in the sky All the TIME! It's great, upbeat, and fun to dance to. I also fall asleep to some of this band's work, most noticeably Blown By the Wind which, sadly, is not on iTunes.

This is an AWESOME CD. Worth every penny, even for a teen like me.

Wonderful Memories...

by
Duck Dodgers

This was the first CD I purchased the same day I bought one of the first generation CD players. (Remember the early 80's?) Can you believe the CD was a Japanese import (no American CD factories at that time) and cost me over $30.00? What I DO remember was the amazing sound of Alan Parsons. I played the track "Mammagamma" over and over. To this day, it's one of my favorite concept albums!

This is great!

by
Blume47

I'm 47 and I grew up listening to Alan Parsons, the days when you would lay on your bed and put the old head phones on and just get taken away with the music. I think it's great to hear 16 and 18 year old kids talk about how todays music is crap because it is and for them to see that Parson's is a great talent and artist is fantastic!